The Song of Solomon is one of my favorite books of the Bible. A long time ago, I heard a preacher expound on the book as a drama with three main characters: a king, a shepherd, and a young girl. I’ve never forgotten that and I always see the play as I read the story.

I won’t go into that today, but I did want to expound on one chapter. Just as people today want to put Jesus into the same category as other prophets and world changers, A group of women long ago surrounded a young girl and wanted to know what was so special about her “beloved”.

Song of Solomon 5:9 “What is your beloved more than another beloved, O you fairest among women [taunted the ladies]? What is your beloved more than another beloved, that you should give us such a charge?” (Amplified Classic version)

In her response from verses ten through sixteen, she starts at his head and describes his features and what is special about him. I found myself questioning why those features would be important - his head, his eyes, his cheeks, etc. But yesterday I found such examples of my sweet Savior in her words.

vs 12 “His eyes are like doves beside the water brooks” - He looks with gentleness

vs 13 “His cheeks are like a bed of spices or balsam, like banks of sweet herbs yielding fragrance. His lips are like bloodred anemones or lilies distilling liquid [sweet-scented] myrrh.” - Myrrh is a medicinal oil for preserving and cleaning of wounds.

vs 14 “His hands are like rods of gold set with [nails of] beryl or topaz.” My Savior’s hands are set with nails on my behalf.

vs. 15 “ His legs are like strong and steady pillars of marble set upon bases of fine gold.” - He is my rock. (Ps. 92:15)

vs. 16 “His voice and speech are exceedingly sweet; yes, he is altogether lovely [the whole of him delights and is precious]. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem!”

There is so much here in these verses. I would love to hear your comments on what you see there too!

The cooler mornings have begun. Finally. It’s almost November and most days have still been in the nineties here in north Florida. Last night we had a drizzle and now at 10:38 am it’s only 66 degrees in Trenton.

Today’s farm tasks: feed, and rake out the extra bedding in the brooder area. I burned the brush pile before the breezes kicked up and while the ground was still wet. Bill’s old blue chair was in there. I can’t wait until it cools down so I can gather the metal springs and hinges to use in my assemblages.

Bill is going to work on adding gates to the hen pastures today and he wants to cut down brush in the overgrown areas. Today we will be in opposite ends of the farm. It will be a good change after spending the last few days butchering and packing together.

There are times for working side by side, and there are times for working separately. I enjoy both. I kissed him good bye and now I’m in the studio with my scented candles and warm sunshine at my back as I write this.

Today’s art tasks: Finish up two assemblages for a show at the Eastern Shore Art Center in Fairhope AL. If I get those done, there are about 20 more small ones filling my work table that I would love to finish for my etsy store and the Harn Museum Gift Shop in Gainesville.

It’s been two weeks since I taught at the Gathering of Artisians in North Carolina and the warm fuzzies are still lingering. There are new friends to connect with on social media and a new purpose in my step. I love teaching; I love seeing my student’s expressions when “Aha” moments strike. I love the words that come out of my mouth that I didn’t know were there. That’s the part God does. He and I get to partner together in the classroom and pass on some knowledge that will widen someone else’s horizons. Yay.

So I’m getting ready to go to my next workshop. Plein air on the eastern shore of Alabama, November 8, 9 and 10. (there’s still room if you’d like to join us). I always learn so much from my students. I can’t wait to see what will happen.

It's always such a gift to go teach at John C Campbell Folk School! I never know what season I will be there, but when they invite me to teach a class I always say "Yes!!" as fast as I can. Every class is an assortment of personalities. I had six this time, one of them my daughter, Cat Pope. Six different levels of skill, six different set's of goals for the week. More than anything, my goal was to push them (just a little) to try something new. I think it was a success. They all went home with smiles on their faces, beautiful paintings tucked under their arms, and hugs and kisses good-bye.

They were not the only ones pushing a little harder this week. I was so excited to be invited down to the blacksmith shop after dinner. Cat and I took our cameras the first night, and then I returned with my easel and paints the next night. I'm just so excited that I actually gave it a go. It's not my best work, but painting people from life is my next goal as a plein air artist. Here's my result. A big thank you to the instructor,, Matthew Clark. He had a roaring fire and heavy hammers going on all the while I painted. The class took pity on me and offered a set of ear plugs which I gladly accepted.

So I set a goal last week to spend eight quality hours in my studio, not cleaning or organizing, but actually painting. One would think eight hours spread out over a whole week would be an easily achievable goal. It was a challenge, but I made it. And I've got a nice painting coming along as a bonus, one I'm happy with. When I looked at it with fresh eyes this morning, I had such a feeling of thankfulness.

Even with two appointments off the farm last week, it was doable, so this week should be even easier. My plan is to finish this painting and then start on the stack of finished paintings that are paired with wooden boxes waiting for the assemblage process. That's my goal, let's see what happens.

Just got back from the plein air painting event in Tarpon Springs, "Tarpon Springs Paint and Photo". My wonderful friend Elaine Hahn put me up in her gorgeous home right on the water. Every morning we woke with the sunrise and raced to paint as the light moved through the coolness of the morning. We shared some great Greek food, (one of my faves) and sipped wine as the sun went down over the bay. One of our favorite spots is Brooker Creek Preserve. Acres of wild Florida right in the middle of Pinellas County.

Here's a painting I did from a little bridge over the creek that runs through the park. The light filtered into the tree canopy and changed by the minute. We spent two mornings there until the yellow deer flies ran us off. Poor Elaine was up all night scratching bug bites for the rest of the paint out. Right before we packed up and left the scene, a lone Ibis decided to skim the waterway with it's bill in search of a treat. Can you see him? I snapped a few photos and added him as the finishing touch. "Ibis in a Quiet Moment" 11x14 oil on linen. I was so excited to hear my name called as the winner of the Friends of Brooker Creek Award with this painting. It will be on display at the Heritage Museum until this weekend. Hope you get the chance to view all the works there this week.

Starting the new year off with a BANG! My first show of the year was Art Festival Beth-El. An invitational fundraiser for Temple Beth-El in St. Petersburg, FL now it's 45th year. What an event! What an honor to be invited! My work was in the Boutique area because most of my boxes are smallish compared to the scale of the paintings in the main gallery. But small and intimate works are my comfort zone. I delivered the work a week prior to the show date, now I had to get ME ready to be seen.

This part of the project was a bit more challenging. The only things I had in my closet that were presentable were two pairs of slacks. One black, one gray, and one shirt that read "We Farm, You Eat". I didn't think the shirt would make the right statement, so off to the very strange and confusing world of clothes shopping.

Remember that show, "What Not to Wear"? O, how I wished Stacey and Clinton would have jumped out of one of the clothes racks at Ross. Some people are good at this; I am not one of them. Nor do I pretend to be. "Focus on the color black," I told myself. "and just get something that will cover the top of you." I gave myself that goal and to stay away from the three-way mirror in the dressing room. Thankfully, I found several black upper garments that fit and were on sale. I still wasn't sure of my choices, so I took all of it to Mom's, along with every black shoe I could find in my closet, and she new what to do.

Mom went as my guest and we both arrived at the opening looking great! The first thing they said at the reception table was congratulations! I had won an award! Here's a picture of me next to the display of my work. Check out the red ribbon. Yes, I am wearing a non-black shirt. Mom ended up loaning me one after all.

The newness of this year is still making me smile. I feel like I'm shedding the skin of the old and my wings are just drying out, getting ready to flap for the first time. The only thing outwardly that has changed is the date. Now I write an "18" in the little space behind the "20" on my checks. But on the inside, I'm bubbling up with ideas for paintings and goals and questions about what to write down in my calendar. Can you believe I've already purchased five planners? This is not a good sign. Decisions have to be made, for crying out loud. If I can't decide on my planner, how am I going to decide which way to go in my artwork this year? I want to plein air paint, I want to assemble a still life, I want to paint a portrait, I want to make a collage, I want to teach a class. And I want to do it all next week. Seriously, I'm planning more art time this year. That's one of my goals. Another is to organize and simplify my stuff and my house so I can get more studio time. And, maybe the most important one, is to sing more. Just sing. Not on stage or anything. Just singing wherever I am. So you might just hear me from across the room. If you do, feel free to join in.

Modern Day Gleaning. That's a better description for the kind of recycling that happens in my studio. Not so much to keep it out of the landfill, (although that's a good thing too), but there's more excitement involved here. Like treasure hunting. Like secret finding. Everyday is a safari, my eyes scanning the jungle, ears listening for those clues that someone is willing to part with a particular item. Like light bulbs. Non-working ones of course. Or rusty, square nuts. Those two things can make my stomach fill with butterflies. Even as a kid I scanned the gutters for bottle caps and old screws. There's a certain giddiness in getting something for free. You know there is. Stuff is the stuff that fills my space. The challenge is carving out table space to put it all together.